Pathway for Indigenous Students

The University of Saskatchewan College of Nursing has been offering health career exploration opportunities for several years, in partnership with other health science colleges. Some of these events include the Northern Lights Health Career Symposium, our annual Open House, as well as numerous career and education fairs across the province. These events are intended to provide hands-on, interactive learning opportunities from a variety of health professions. Students have the opportunity to engage in activities such as taking blood pressures and temperatures, making casts for “limbs” made from paint rollers and suturing incisions in suture pads. These health career engagement sessions also provide the opportunity for students to hear from and meet with local role models to discuss their journey to becoming a health professional.

Learning communities seek to provide Indigenous pre-professional year students the opportunity to feel a sense of belonging and identity with the University of Saskatchewan and the Health Sciences. Students also receive academic and personal support as they prepare to meet the requirements to apply to the College of Nursing.

Pre-professional year students at the Saskatoon Campus should consider signing up for the University of Saskatchewan Arts and Science Indigenous Student Achievement Program (ISAP), which has STEM pathways and special Medicine Wheel Health Sciences learning communities to help students prepare for some of the College of Nursing pre-professional courses. ISAP First-year Learning Communities bring students with common academic goals together in popular 100-level courses, a weekly gathering with upper year peer mentors and offers holistic academic advising and connection points with Indigenous faculty and alumni role models. ISAP also offers an exciting Summer Start program, which is designed to help Indigenous students prepare for University. Programming through ISAP is designed to build confidence, knowledge and skills, while connecting students to one another and to our campus community.

The College of Nursing has been a national leader in providing personal, tutorial and academic support to Indigenous nursing students through its University of Saskatchewan Community of Indigenous Nursing (UCIN) program, formerly the Native Access Program to Nursing (NAPN), to help increase the number of Indigenous people in the nursing profession. Current Indigenous nursing students seeking assistance or anyone interested in applying to the College in the future, should contact a UCIN advisor today!

2^nd year students:

• Are you interested in some tips, guidance or support on particular courses or skills from an upper year student?

3^rd and 4^th year students:

• Are you doing well in your courses?
• Are you interested in providing some time and guidance to a 2^nd year nursing student? 

Contact a UCIN advisor today to indicate your interest. We will match you up and provide some brief introductions and orientation to get you started. 

The University of Saskatchewan College of Nursing offers three programs leading to the Master of Nursing (MN) degree: Professional Practice (Course-based), Thesis and Nurse Practitioner (NP); as well as a Doctor of Philosophy in Nursing (PhD).

The College of Nursing hopes to prepare Indigenous Registered Nurses, who complete the graduate program, for leadership and advanced practice positions in health care, educator roles and nursing and health research. Five equity seats have been set aside for Indigenous applicants in the Nurse Practitioner program.

All our graduate programs are accessible from our campuses in Prince Albert, Saskatoon and Regina, as well as via distance learning (online and videoconference).